Mattress assembly

ABSTRACT

A mattress formed of a core of foamed flexible material having a border wire embedded in the vertical wall and to which the edges of the covering panel are attached for assembly.

United States Patent 1 Golembeck June 12, 1973 1 MATTRESS ASSEMBLY [75] Inventor: Gerald A. Golembeck, Hazel Crest,

[73] Assignee: The United States Bedding Company,

Englander Division, St. Paul, Minn.

22 Filed: May1(),l971

2| Appl.N0.: 141,697

[52] U.S. Cl. 5/345, 5/3531 [51] Int. Cl. A47c 23/00 [58] Field of Search 5/345, 351, 355,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,055,021 9/1962 Rymland 5/351 3,262,136 7/1966 Sevcik 5/361 R Primary ExaminerFrancis K. Zugel Assistant Examiner-Andrew M. Calvert Att0meyMcD0ugall, Hersh & Scott [57] ABSTRACT A mattress formed ofa core of foamed flexible material having a border wire embedded in the vertical wall and to which the edges of the covering panel are attached for assembly.

8 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures MATTRESS ASSEMBLY This invention relates to construction of a new and improved mattress and method for producing same and it relates more particularly to the'construetion ofa mattress having a core of foamed plastic or rubber-like material.

It is an object of this invention to produce a mattress of foamed rubber or plastic material in which the covers are secured in position of use in a manner which increases the comfort of the mattress, which improves the stability of the mattress and the elements of which it is formed, which enables the mattress more easily to be assembled with less labor and cost, and which provides a mattress of better appearance.

These and other objects and advantages of this invention will hereinafter appear and for purposes of illustration, but not of limitation, embodiments of the invention are shown in the accompanying drawings, in which FIG. 1 is a perspective elevational view of a mattress embodying the features of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a top. plan view of a corner portion of the foamed core prior to insertion of the border wire;

FIG. 3 is a sectional elevational view of an edge portion of the mattress of FIG. 1, in an intermediate stage of assembly;

FIG. 4 is a sectional elevational view of an edge portion of the completed mattress; and

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a modified form of mattress embodying the features of this invention.

Briefly described, an important concept of the invention resides in the construction of a mattress with a border wire embedded within the vertical walls of the mattress to extend continuously all around the mattress with the edge portions of the top and bottom panel covers connected to the border wire to effect the attachment of the panels in position of use in an area which is completely concealed and away from the usable surface of the mattress thereby to increase the comfort as well as the appearance of the mattress. In order to fix the position of the anchoring border wire and substantially to conceal the assembly, the border wire is embedded within a slot that is provided in the vertical walls of the foamed core located about midway between the top and bottom surfaces.

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the drawings which are representative of the construction of the mattress embodying the features of this invention.

The core of the mattress is a slab of foamed plastic, such as foamed polyurethane, or foamed elastomeric material, such as rubber or synthetic rubber. The exact composition is not significant insofar as the novel features of construction are concerned. The core is formed with a recessed portion 12 extending inwardly from the vertical walls about midway between the top and bottom surfaces. Such recessed portion may be formed by slotting or slitting the core after the slab has been cut or by molding during formation of the slab. It will be sufficient if the recessed portion extends into the core buta short distance from the edge but it is preferred to form the recessed portion to a depth of about to I inch at the straight wall portions and about A: to 2 inches at the corners, with the preferred dimension being about 178 inch at the walls and 1% inches at the corners.

A wire member 14 is embedded in the recessed portion 12 to extend continuously about the core as a border wire. The wire member can be round or of polygonal cross-section and of variable gauge such as within the range of 3 to 9 gauge. In assembly, the border wire can be raised about the core to bring the free ends in abutting relationship for connection one to the other or the border wire can be preformed to fit within the recessed portion of the core.

The panels 16 and 18 covering the top and bottom surfaces of the core may be of conventional construction including a cover sheet 20, a backing sheet 22, with a film 24 sandwiched in between and with the elements secured one to the other by suitable stitching 26 to provide a construction referred to as ticking. The cover sheet can be fabricated of any textile material designed for wear or appearance. The backing Sheet 22 can be in the form of a Leno cloth, Dixie net or similar 4 X 4 cotton netting of the type generally used in the trade. The film 24 can be cotton or other natural synthetic fibers or linters, cellulosic padding, woven or non-woven fabric and the like with the elements sewn together to form the ticking described.

The edges of the panels 16 and 18 are secured to the border wire 14 by means of extensions in the form of flanges 28 and 30 of textile material attached along one edge 32, as by sewing to the adjacent portions of the re- I spective panels spaced a short distance inwardly from the edge. The flanges are secured at closely spaced apart portions along the other edge, as by hog rings 32 to the embedded border wire. The material making up the flange is generally in the form of a coarse woven material, often referred to in the trade as osnaberg. It may be attached to the border wire by hog rings or other fastening means. The flanges extend from the edge portion of the panels for a distance about the vertical walls to reach the recessed portions and then into the recessed portions for attachment to the border wire. Thus, the connection between the panels and the border wire are substantially concealed and away from the exposed surfaces of the mattress thereby to enhance the comfort and appearance of the mattress while securely mounting the panels to embrace the mattress in the assembled relation.

In assembly, the bottom panel 18 is first spread over a flat surface and the recessed core 10 is properly positioned in centered relation on the bottom panel with the flanges extending freely outwardly thereof. Then the top panel is draped over the top surface of the core with the flanges 28 depending from the outer edges alongside the vertical walls of the core. The free edges of the panels 28 and 30 are then brought together to a position adjacent the border wire and simultaneously joined by hog rings to the border wire at closely spaced apart portions to effect the attachment of the panels in proper position of use about the core.

The mattress is then finished by the application of the vertical border 36 which covers the vertical walls of the mattress and conceals the flanges and for attachment to the border wire. The vertical border 36 is in the form of a textile material similar to the textile material forming the top sheet of the panels. It is dimensioned to have a width corresponding to the thickness of the core. In assembly, the upper and lower edge portions of the vertical edge panels are secured to the free outer edges 38 of the top and bottom panels respectively, as by binding tapes 40. The panels may be sewn, as by the stitching 42, in any desirable pattern for ticking and to join the different layers in the event that the vertical panel is formed of layers of different material, such as the outer textile fabric, an inner base material and/or a central padding.

By way of modification of the mattress assembly, to produce a mattress that is stiffer in the area exposed to the greatest load in use but which does not enter into the concept of the invention, the mattress may be fabricated with an additional pad 42 interposed between the bottom side of the top panel 16 and the top side of the core 10, to be retained therebetween in the assembled relation. As illustrated in FIG. 4 of the drawings, the insert is in the form of a fabric having a mid-portion 44, preferably in the middle third, formed ofa textile material in the form of a woven or non-woven fabric of sisal or other crown material which isrelatively strong and stiff, while the remainder 46 is formed of a conventional textile characterized by less stiffness and strength than the middle crown section. The insert also may be stitched in a pattern forjoinder of the various elements.

It will be apparent from the foregoing that I have produced a mattress construction in which the panels covering the central core of flexible foamed material are fastened in position of use in a manner which does not expose the fastening and whichsecurely joins the panels in their assembled relationship to the core thereby to increase the comfort as well as the appearance of the mattress assembly and in which the elements making up the mattress construction can be joined in a simple and efficient manner to a self-positioning border wire whereby the assembled relationship is maintained over an extended period of time. I

It will be understood that changes may be made in the details of construction, arrangement and operation without departing from the spirit of the invention, especially as defined in the following claims.

I claim:

1. A mattress construction comprising a flexible core of foamed material having the dimension and shape of a mattress, a recessed portion extending inwardly all around the core from the vertical walls of the core about midway between the upper and lower surfaces, a wire member embedded within said recessed portion to extend continuously about the core, top and bottom cover panels of textile material over the top and bottom surfaces of the core, and means securing the outer edges of said panels to the wire member embedded within the recessed portions of the core and side panels dimensioned to have a width slightly greater than the width of the core and means securing the upper and lower edge portions of the side panels to the outer edge portions of the top and bottom cover panels respectively.

2. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the recessed portions extend inwardly from the outer edges by an amount within the range of A to 1 inch in the wall portions and to 2 inches in the corner portions.

3. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the recessed portions extend inwardly from the outer edges by an amount of about inch in the wall portions and about 1% inches in the corner portions.

4. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the means joining the outer edge portions of the panels to the embedded wire comprises flanges secured along one edge to the outer edge portion of the panel and at the other edge to the embedded wire.

5. A mattress as claimed in claim 4 in which the outer edges of the flanges are sewn to the outer edge portions of the panels.

6. A mattress as claimed in claim 4 in which the inner edges of the flanges are secured to the border wire by hog rings.

7. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the flanges are dimensioned to have a width corresponding to about one-half the thickness of the core.

8. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the means securing the side panels to the free edges of the cover panels comprises binding tapes. 

1. A mattress construction comprising a flexible core of foamed material having the dimension and shape of a mattress, a recessed portion extending inwardly all around the core from the vertical walls of the core about midway between the upper and lower surfaces, a wire member embedded within said recessed portion to extend continuously about the core, top and bottom cover panels of textile material over the top and bottom surfaces of the core, and means securing the outer edges of said panels to the wire member embedded within the recessed portions of the core and side panels dimensioned to have a width slightly greater than the width of the core and means securing the upper and lower edge portions of the side panels to the outer edge portions of the top and bottom cover panels respectively.
 2. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the recessed portions extend inwardly from the outer edges by an amount within the range of 1/4 to 1 inch in the wall portions and 1/2 to 2 inches in the corner portions.
 3. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the recessed portions extend inwardly from the outer edges by an amount of about 1/2 inch in the wall portions and about 1 1/2 inches in the corner portions.
 4. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the means joining the outer edge portions of the panels to the embedded wire comprises flanges secured along one edge to the outer edge portion of the panel and at the other edge to the embedded wire.
 5. A mattress as claimed in claim 4 in which the outer edges of the flanges are sewn to the outer edge portions of the panels.
 6. A mattress as claimed in claim 4 in which the inner edges of the flanges are secured to the border wire by hog rings.
 7. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the flanges are dimensioned to have a width corresponding to about one-half the thickness of the core.
 8. A mattress as claimed in claim 1 in which the means securing the side panels to the free edges of the cover panels comprises binding tapes. 